Parlour
by reminiscent-afterthought
Summary: Running away sounds appealing, and it should be quite easy to avoid the past with an aeroplane. Except the net that bonds have forged are tighter, and Ryou doesn't expect to run into someone he knows outside of Japan. But he does, and maybe she, with the help of a stubborn phone-pal she'd rather never talk to again, can knock some sense into him.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** This was supposed to be a Ryou-less fic…but somehow he wound up being the main character. Oh well…

Written for the Diversity Writing Challenge, j25 – write a post-cannon fic, and for the Novel with Prompts Challenge, the prompt for this chapter: queue.

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 **Parlour**  
 _Chapter 1_

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 _Egypt_  
 _Valley of the Kings_  
 _Cairo International Airport_

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He'd stayed to watch the Ceremonial Duel.

In retrospect, he probably shouldn't have. It made it that much harder to slip past them thereafter. In the end, he said he'd chosen to stay in Egypt a little longer, and before they could attack that clumsy course of action, he embellished it. Told of how his father was setting up an exhibit (which he was, though he carefully neglected to mention exactly _what_ the exhibit would be on), about how he planned to meet him (which he didn't), how his father had enough frequent flyer miles to fund a trip around the world (which was a slight exaggeration). He talked to the point of babbling, and maybe it was only the aftermath of the Pharaoh's – Atem's – departure that kept the others blind. But they smiled and wished him luck and settled into Odion's jeep for a ride to the airport.

And Ishizu and Marik offered to give him a ride to wherever he planned to stay. It took some slower thinking to get out of that one, and eventually he had to give up on a lie and admit he hadn't sorted that out yet. As far as people to admit his Yami's misdeeds to went, Marik was on the good end of the spectrum. He couldn't really speak for Ishizu, having never actually talked to her before. But Marik was perhaps the person who would understand the best, who'd come the closest to similar circumstances and sometimes, before the church had fallen, he'd considered picking up the phone and calling the Egyptian.

It wasn't the prospect of a hefty bill that stopped him. The money his father sent to maintain his living expenses could handle a few long distance calls as well. What he'd saved over the past few years could handle a couple of plane fares, even. It was simply the thought of talking about it all, of facing what scars and shortcomings of his own that let the other spirit claim his body again and again.

He knew full well he was running away, like he'd always done. And maybe Marik and Ishizu could see that as well, because they looked at each other in concern. 'We could all go to the airport,' he suggested. 'They have a place where you can get hotels and transport to them. And money exchange and other useful things.'

And that sounded very useful indeed, because he sincerely doubted that his Yami, the thief he was, had bothered to change Japanese yen into Egyptian pounds.

'Airport it is,' he agreed.

.

Airport meant he got to see a little more of Yugi and the others, and they of him. Luckily, he seemed to have placated what shallow worries they carried towards him (because how could they care deeply, when he seemed to come in a set with a spirit that caused the Pharoah, and his host and friends, such grief), and the conversation was light. Jonouchi was hoping to call his sister from the airport, something Honda was excited about.

Ryou didn't even remember Jyou's sister. He knew of her; they'd travelled together in Duellist Kingdom after all, after the spirit of the ring suffered its first defeat at the Pharoah's hands. If he'd ever met her though, it was with body only. And he wasn't going to ask because those were just more details better not known.

Goodbyes were done and then he wandered off with false promises to meet up again soon – or perhaps they weren't false. He'd failed at that before. And he'd been told several times already that his Yami wouldn't return but he had.

The difference now was that he no longer had the ring. And though a part of him ached at its absence, he was glad it had been taken out of his hands. Like a drug, he was attracted to it and it to him, otherwise he would have thrown it away himself in Duellist Kingdom and never gone back for it.

If he had, his story could have been very different, but he'd been naïve to think the spirit would stay beaten. He hadn't. Would it stay beaten now? Perhaps. Perhaps not. Yugi had had the ring last, and yet its spirit had still crept up on him. The distance hadn't stopped it. Could it then float out of the Pharaoh's tomb and back into his hands?

That thought made him want to leave Egypt as soon as possible, and when he thought about it, it wasn't a wholly bad idea. There was nothing in Egypt that wasn't anywhere else, save his father and Marik and he'd prefer to avoid known company for the time being. Perhaps all company.

When was the next flight with empty seats, he wondered?

.

'Saint Petersberg,' said the woman at the counter, replying to his accented Arabic with her own smoother dialect. 'Departing in two hours.'

The former Russian capital. He'd been once, to see the Bronze Horseman, but that had been a long time ago: when his mother and sister were still alive, when the family had travelled together instead of alone. But it wasn't a heavy place from his past: not like Australia or England or Egypt or Japan. As good a place as any, he supposed, though his Russian was pretty limited. Limited to what had come out of a guidebook fourteen years prior – so he should probably say he didn't know any Russian at all. Not that it mattered. He hadn't known any Japanese when he'd picked Japan as his roost, but he'd picked it up quickly enough.

'I'll take a ticket,' he said. Luckily, he had his passport with his wallet – or rather, lucky that his Yami hadn't removed either or both from his pocket.

The woman looked at his passport. 'Japanese citizen…Do you have a visa for Russia?'

…of course, that had been going too well. 'No,' he admitted. 'I did about fourteen years ago.'

She smiled kindly. 'That's too old, I'm afraid. The next available flight is to Changi International Airport in Singapore. Doesn't require a visa for Japanese citizens for the first thirty days.'

Ryou nodded. Singapore he'd never been to before. That was fine, and with a few country hops, he could make it back to Japan too if he chose to, or away. 'When does it leave?'

'Two and a half hours.' She printed a receipt and boarding pass for him. He was pretty much in the front of the aeroplane (sans the first class), but that was what happened with last minute bookings. 'Luggage?'

He shook his head. 'Just hand-carry.' At the small frown that marred her features, he added: 'Just doing a bit of backpacking before returning home. It's more the adventure than the place.'

'Fair enough.' She shrugged and handed him a nametag. 'Just put that on your backpack.' Which he'd have to buy, because the spirit of the ring had only bothered with the coat and what was in its pockets at the time.

He was lucky to be old enough to be travelling alone, otherwise there would have been a lot more awkward questions involved.

.

He checked the board. His flight was boarding in an hour and a half. The earliest flight back to Japan wouldn't for another four. And he wasn't even sure if they'd be getting on that flight, because there was a fair number of people to seat.

When he almost stumbled upon them in one of the souvenir stands, he realised the seating wasn't a problem at all, and he silently groaned and ducked behind the trolley bags. From the sounds of things, he didn't want to actually walk in on that conversation.

But he had to admit that, once his name popped up, he couldn't simply walk away.

'It's too bad we don't know where he planned on staying,' Yugi was saying. 'If we're sticking around a few more days, it would've been nice to explore together.'

'What do you mean "if"?' That was Jonouchi, distinctive even if he hadn't been standing straight and easy to spot. 'Of course we're staying. We don't get a chance to explore Egypt every day.'

Someone laughed. It sounded like Yugi's grandfather, but he couldn't be sure. His closest encounter with the older man was when he'd taken him to the hospital, and he'd been too distracted by the pain to think much else at the time. He couldn't see the speaker either – but he could only see Jonouchi, Honda and Odion in any case. The others were hidden by the shelves and the merchandise they held.

'You youngsters think you can cover Egypt in a week?' Yup, that confirmed it.

'We'll be happy to help.' That must be Ishizu, because he knew Anzu's voice and that wasn't it, and she was the only female in the group. 'Right?'

'Sure…' That must be Marik, because Odion's lips hadn't moved and it sounded more like Marik anyway. It was hard to place voices he'd heard only recently for the first time – assuming his subconsciousness hadn't been taking notes while under his Yami's control. That was a bleak prospect, though probably true. The fuel of his nightmares. The fuel of his guilt before he put together enough for a concrete picture from other's words and hints.

They drifted off after that, their words becoming more indistinct until he couldn't hear their voices anymore. He peeked out from behind the shelf. He could just make out Jonouchi's blond hair in the distance, waving his arms animatedly in a way that made him want to smile.

The baggage he carried wouldn't let him. So he turned away and combed the shelves, wincing at the prices but admitting a backpack, even empty, was a necessity at this point. He couldn't board a plane with just a wallet, a passport and a deck of cards without questions he'd rather avoid than lie through.

'Let me guess,' said a dry voice from behind him, and Ryou jumped. _Marik_! And indeed it was Marik, looking torn between pity and amusement. 'Your Yami neglected to do any packing for you.'

'Something like that,' he agreed, taking a few shallow breaths to calm himself. 'You startled me.'

'I thought I noticed you.' That explained the distracted "Sure" he'd given earlier. 'Airports are a pretty expensive place to shop. You'd find much better prices at a bazaar.'

'Uhh…' How could he explain why he couldn't go shopping in an Egyptian bazaar because his flight would leave in two hours? 'Where are the others?'

'Ishizu and Odion are looking after them for the moment.'

So they were alone. Well, there were worse people than Marik Ishtar to admit the truth too. 'Actually, I'm not staying in Egypt. I just need some…alone time.'

'In Japan?' Marik raised an eyebrow.

'Somewhere…fresh. For a bit, anyway. I'll probably have to go back once school starts.'

'School…' the other repeated, like it was a foreign word. And maybe it was, to him. 'Maybe I ought to give it a try.'

'Don't tell Jonouchi or Honda,' Ryou advised. 'They'll try to convince you otherwise.' He saw them enough at school to know their attitude towards it. 'Anzu might be your best bet when it comes to advice.'

'Noted.' He grinned. 'Though if you're concerned about missing school, I'd say you're not a bad choice yourself.'

He turned away a little. He was a bad choice for rather different reasons, and they both recognised the fact. 'Do you have enough money to get around?'

'I've saved up a fair bit.' Ryou nodded. He wasn't sure if he did have enough for another flight, honestly, since he still wasn't sure if his Yami had used his account balance or less savoury means to arrive in Egypt in the first place. But he also didn't necessarily have to fly back to Japan. There were other ways to country hop.

He also didn't have to go back to Japan at all, if it came to that. There wasn't much in his apartment he was worried about losing. Much in Japan, except friends he didn't deserve, friends he wasn't even sure called him a friend after all the trouble he'd brought them.

'So you just need luggage.' Marik grabbed his wrist and pulled him out of the shop, and he followed along. They weren't going in the same direction as Yugi and the others anyway. Just to an empty duo of seats. Marik plopped down on one and emptied the backpack he wore.

Now, Ryou understood, and he protested.

Marik just waved him off. 'Much cheaper than the airport,' he said. 'And I'm selling it to you, anyhow. I can pick up another when we take the others. Maybe they'll have something with a motorbike picture this time.'

Ryou blinked and closed his mouth. He couldn't really argue with that.

.

Marik was gone before Ryou remembered he'd never told the other to not tell his plans. Though he wouldn't lose much if they knew. After all, he hadn't told Marik where he was heading exactly, so nobody would be able to track him down and drag him in front of any committee. Except his father, but it was doubtful he'd check the expenses until the next deposit and he had a good fortnight before that happened.

He had a backpack now too, which smoothed things along somewhat. He put his deck in there – or the spirit's deck (he hadn't checked it yet and he wasn't planning to right then either, though he did know he'd rather not have it in his holster) – and duel disk, and coat. He put the wallet and passport in his jeans pockets instead. He'd need them to get through boarding, and he had plenty of experience with thievery beyond that.

If one could really call it an experience.

Once he was in the departure lounge, he stopped looking over his shoulder. No-one without a boarding pass of their own would follow him. No surprises like Marik. No smiles from Yugi and the others when none of them were sure he deserved them. Just strangers boarding planes just like him and the people walking there, observing, ushering them to security checks and boarding gates and other things.

It grew darker outside. He could just make out a plane anchored to a bridge close by. First class and business passengers were called. A queue began to form: like a snake, twisting between the rows of seats and past him once the economy class was called up as well. They were smart, at least. Calling out passengers by seating zones. C first, and he supposed C was the rear of the plane because he was F. Then D, then E, and the line only grew longer.

It took almost half an hour for them to call out F, and by then there wasn't much of a queue, there or to be made, at all.

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The plane was big, but he didn't see much of the inside. He was sitting in the front. Staring at the curtain that split economy from the first class and business passengers, in fact. Beside him was a little boy. Continuing the row was a mother and three kids. The little boy must have been hers too or travelling alone, otherwise he would have been sitting with his own mother.

It was his first plane flight, and he was leaning across his arm-rest and chatting in rapid-fire Arabic to whom Ryou assumed was his sister. He only glanced at her before staring out the window. Was colourless hair a common thing in Egypt? There was Marik, and this family too. But the mother's hair was a soft brown. His mother's had been white and she'd passed in on to both her children. Before, his father would complain how his genes had been tossed out of the equation. Now, they only talked about necessities: school, living, work…

The seatbelt sign blinked on and the captain introduced himself through the monitors. The young boy beside him was still babbling excitedly, and he put his headset on to listen to the safety instructions better. His mind drifted anyway: to the deck burning a hole through the backpack in the overhead locker, to Marik being so agreeable with his half-hearted and somewhat crazy plan, with Yugi and the others smiling after he'd almost gotten them killed _again_ …and to the girl sitting across the aisle who looked to be about as old as Amane had been, before she'd…

Of course, his Yami wouldn't have bothered writing to her. He should ask for a pad and pen, he decided, once the plane took off. He probably had a few letters to catch up on. Though what was he going to say? Amane was the last person in the world who should know.

The plane began to move. The broken white lines on the runway blurred into one, and the lights did too. He began to plan his letter. _Dear Amane. I'm sorry it's been a while. Your big brother is writing from an aeroplane in Cairo…_

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 **Extra notes:**

Yami Bakura doesn't follow many rules, so who knows how he got to Egypt and the Pharaoh's tomb. Ryou will find out soon whether the money came out of the account his father set up for him or not (or indeed if money was involved at all :D).

Ignore the mention of Australia for the time being. That'll be explained later on. England and Japan are more self-explanatory.

The languages Ryou knows – this is me guessing/going with what works well with the fic, but Yami Yugi and Yami Bakura should both know Arabic, having their roots in Egypt (writing was Egyptian hieroglyphics, but I don't know of a speech equivalent to that). Of course, that's of little relevance here. Ryou knows a handful of languages because of his father's work, and if his father's narrowed his interests down to Egyptian artefacts at some point during his travels, he'd have had to learn the official language. And Ryou had plenty of time on his hands after the ring (and maybe even before) with the lack of friends issue, so why not learn some languages his father also knows? The Russian is out of a guide book. English was his first language (going from the British accent in the English dub), so English, Japanese, Arabic and Chinese (reason explained later), in that order. Now, the international airport probably does know English (the ones in Saudi Arabia and Dubai did), but Ryou knowing Arabic ties in with a headcanon of mine. Not sure if it'll be relevant in this fic or not so I'll just keep it to myself for now.

Carrying the passport around…don't know if this is an Australian thing or worldwide, but it's an unwritten rule (except when you get into a situation like an accident or a crime where it becomes a written rule) to carry a form of ID around (especially to places like test centres), and student cards don't count in most cases. So, for people who don't have a driver's licence, the default to fall back onto is usually the passport. I had to get mine especially renewed for a test one time because I didn't have a driver's licence.

Visa…wiki is my best friend for this. Visa required for Russia before departure. Visa not required for Singapore for 30 days, and not for Malaysia for 90 days. Visa not required for China for 15 days. Visa is required for North Korea but not South Korea for the first 90 days, and naturally no visa to return to Japan while he's a citizen. Interestingly, Egypt does require a visa, but it's visa on arrival which means it doesn't have to be pre-applied, I think. In any case, that's Toei's problem, not mine. :D

Russia and Singapore… Russia sounded fun (I had this image of eskimo Ryou) until I realised he needed a visa he didn't plausibly have. Singapore because it's nearby (relatively), close to China and Japan (relatively again) and I just got back from there last week so some fresh first-hand experience. Granted, Yugioh took place some years back so things like the metro wouldn't have existed at the time. But it's better than me walking completely blind like I will in some of the later bits.


	2. Chapter 2

Prompt for this chapter is: sparkle

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 **Parlour**  
 _Chapter 2_

 _._

 _Singapore  
Near/over Singapore airspace  
Changi International Airport  
Orchard road_

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He dozed off halfway through writing his letter, and fell into a sleep deep enough to miss both the meal and and an announcement of turbulence. He was only awake now because the boy beside him had poked him quite painfully, and he'd jerked and almost hit his head on the monitor in front of him as the shadows faded into the light of the cabin.

There was an air hostess leaning over the boy's seat to him as well. Though she was scolding the boy in arabic, at the moment.

'It's okay,' said Ryou. It wasn't. His heart and head were both pounding and he felt a speck of bile deep in his throat, but those weren't the boy's fault at all. 'Thank you for waking me.'

The boy beamed. 'You were having a nightmare.'

Yes, he was. But his entire life, recently, was a nightmare so he supposed it couldn't be avoided.

'What was it about?' the boy asked curiously.

'Hasan!' hissed his mother, across the aisle.

He vaguely recognised that name. Was it one of his yami's thieves? Or perhaps one of the Pharaoh's men. It didn't matter, anyway. They were both gone. There wouldn't be any more Shadow Magic or similar things to dreg the past up once again.

And yet…

'I was trapped,' he admitted, in part to himself and partially answering the younger boy.

The air hostess cleared her throat. 'Do you need anything?' she asked. 'A glass of water? Some paracetamol?' She was still talking in arabic. Then again, he'd been replying to Hasan in arabic so she had no reason to choose english instead.

Water and a tablet to take an edge off the headache sounded good. But did paracetamol work with nausea? Maybe he should find his airsick bag - or lock himself in the toilet for a little bit.

The second option seemed more preferable. 'Both, please.' And then he'd wash his face in the bathroom, and empty his stomach if he needed to.

He should save the tablet for after that, shouldn't he? He didn't want to lose the tablet before it had a chance to do anything.

.

They touched down in Singapore an hour later. They handed out a small breakfast before that and Ryou polished his off despite the raw throat. The tea helped with that, but it also sloshed around his stomach like he hadn't eaten anything at all.

He wondered how long it would take before his body forgot the Shadow Realm.

The boy beside him had lost interest in him again. Ryou was glad. Someone slightly older would have been more picky, noting the pallor, noting the dark shadows under his eyes, noting the raw throat when he spoke.

But he'd underestimated the boy because, when the waited for the business class to disembark, he pressed a soft toy into his hand. The toy all kids got from the aeroplane - this time it _was_ an aeroplane too, but Ryou was too old. Even if he wasn't a legal adult yet, he more or less lived like one: responsible for his own finances from the allowance his father sent him, and in most cases his own guardian.

And here this child was, giving away his stuffed aeroplane toy because the teenager sitting beside him had had a nightmare.

He protested. 'It'll ward off nightmares,' the boy beamed. 'All stuffed toys do that.'

He'd had a stuffed bear, once upon a time. He'd given it to Amane. Its head had been torn off in the car crash, and he didn't know what had happened to it after that. Thrown out with the car, probably. Toys didn't get funerals. Only people. But funerals were so hard it might be easier to not have them for people too.

'Thank you,' he said finally. The boy cocked his head and he realised he'd switched into english. 'Thank you,' he repeated, in arabic this time.

'You're welcome,' the boy replied, bouncing out of his seat and accepting his bag from his mother.

Ryou put the stuffed aeroplane into his backpack and trailed after them.

.

He'd been a little worried about the thermal scanners, but they seemed to pick fevers out of the body, not other symptoms and he got through the airport with no problems. Except customs who wanted to know where his luggage was. 'Lost it in Egypt,' he muttered. 'I've already filed a report.'

Because he couldn't well tell the airport personnel that his Yami hadn't thought to do any decent packing, now could he?

In any case, they believed him, stamped his passport, and sent him off. Which left him more or less to his own devices.

He still had a bit of a headache, but it wasn't unbearable. The airport was bright - brighter than the cabin, and the sun was bright outside as well, and large as well. There were travel agents to one side, and shops to another. And an alley-like path that led to all the fast food stores.

His stomach twisted. That snack from the aeroplane had vanished somewhere and he'd missed his meal. Or one of the two. it had been an eleven hour flight after all. He'd lost the night in there, leaving Egypt in the afternoon and skipping six hours ahead. He'd slept most of the flight, even though a nightmare had spoiled the end of it. He was still tired, though. Tired after sleeping nine hours straight. But even if he'd barely slept at all, the nightmare had chased away any want to sleep.

He was surprised it hadn't chased his appetite away. Didn't that usually happen? But hunger still gnawed.

He sighed, giving in. Maybe soup or a salad or something. Something soft on the stomach. And then a map so he could deal with the luggage issue...and then work out what to do as he dawdled away in this foreign country.

.

He'd meant to get a salad. Somehow, the smell of all those dressings had made him grimace and he wound up at a noodle place instead where the steam hid the calories. He ordered a bowl. Noodles were more filling, after all. Except they vanished into the dark hole of his stomach as well, and it took an ounce of self control he wasn't quite sure he wanted to spare in order to stop himself from ordering another bowl. He didn't want to throw up again.

He washed the feeling down with water from one of the drinking fountains, and busied himself with making a mental checklist. 'Okay, I need at least one other pair of clothes, a water bottle…' What else did he need? 'Change some money to Singaporean dollars…' Was it even dollars, or something else entirely? He'd need to check on that, and his bank account to see how much his Yami had drained - if any at all.

He checked. And he supposed he couldn't be too surprised. Maybe he was supposed to be grateful too, unless it got him into trouble later on. He wasn't, though. He couldn't be grateful to that spirit, no matter how he tried to justify his actions in relation to him. He'd say it, if he was there. How it was all for him, his host. Giving him things. Saving him. Protecting him.

Drawing scars on his soul, more like.

In any case, he had plenty of funds. He withdrew a bit because he'd probably need a taxi fare and hotel as well. Or a tent and camping bag. It might be nice to sleep under the stars, on an island like Duellist Kingdom but something like that came with its own baggage too. Not to mention different places had different laws to camping in roads and parks and things. He'd have to look into that. At least for tonight, he needed a hotel. Or motel. Something with a bed and preferably a shower as well. Maybe breakfast.

In any case, he should probably add some groceries to his mental list. And transfer it on to the pad and pen the air hostess had given him.

He needed to finish that letter for Amane too. Skip the nightmare, but tell her about Changhi airport and any disasters he ran into while clothes shopping...if only because he couldn't get rid of the salesgirls trying to help him out. Tell her about any language barriers because that had always been an adventure before… But he doubted there'd be a problem. The workers at the airport spoke both English and Mandarin and the signs were similarly in both languages.

He turned out to be right. He hailed a cab (after picking up a map from the information stand) and english was fine. 'Orchard road, please.' It looked to be a shopping area, with buses nearby and Little India in walking distance too.

Of course, maybe the language didn't matter because "please" was the only word in there that wasn't a name. Except the driver definitely knew english, because he was chatting about popular tourist things in Singapore. There was a Little China as well as a Little India. And an electronics centre which also sounded like it was walking distance from Orchard Road. And an island that you could walk around in a day and had things like the Universal Studio and old war attractions as well. And buses left every day for Malaysia and Indonesia, and they charged only three to four Singaporean dollars. A far cry from aeroplane fares, but he supposed they only had a bridge's worth of ocean to cross over. Did sort of break the fourth wall when it came to island definitions though, seeing as you could cross to another island on land transport - or one's own feet when it came to Sentosa Island. It was too easy to escape it, aside from the visa issue but he thought he could get into both Malaysia and Indonesia without a pre-applied visa if he chose to. It might be something to consider. It depended on his long term plans and he should probably stay a few days in Singapore before considering that.

.

Orchard road was completely packed with shops - except for the park and temple. The park looked nice. A place to sit and relax, or read a book, or eating lunch - and he almost groaned to himself because he'd already had breakfast, and noodles with beef and cauliflower toppings at that. As for the shops, there were different kinds. Lots of clothing stores but most of them didn't sell casual - or, if they did, then girls casual. Or indian casual in a few of them, which would most likely be mistaken for girls casual in a place like America or Japan. He did find a few convenience stores though, and a souvenir store that had a sale on and he found himself picking keychains out for his friends before he wondered if he should even be doing that. And whether he actually had ten people he might want to give keychains to. In the end, he brought them anyway. They were ten dollars in total. About eight hundred yen. Only worth a lunch, all in all. Or two crepes if they were on sale. He wouldn't lose much by giving them - or even leaving them in the mail boxes with a little note. But Yugi and the others were always nice. They'd accept a souvenir even if it was Zorc the Dark one giving it to them, though they'd be understandably wary.

Or maybe they wouldn't. He hoped not because nothing Zorc gave as a present could possibly be good. He had the roleplay on his computer still. He had a lot of reminders of his yami's misadventures, now that he thought about it. Things he'd never touched again, simply because he wanted to avoid them. But that wouldn't work forever. At some point, he'd have to clean up. Just like they couldn't keep his mother's and sister's rooms they way they'd always been, and his father more so because half the room was suddenly collecting dust and becoming cold. But after they'd packed up, he'd started travelling for longer periods until it didn't really matter any more. A few years later, Ryou tired of travelling and his father decided he needed to be settled for school anyway and chose Japan because of its education system and the centre of lots of up and coming games at the time, like Duel Monsters. Though that hadn't worked out quite the way they'd planned. And his father decided to rent out his own place in Cairo, and split most of his time between there and Japan and a few other places equally involved in the study of Egyptian artefacts.

The next time he saw his father was when he received the ring.

'Were you looking for a necklace for your girlfriend?'

He jumped. He hadn't even realised he'd stopped in front of another souvenir stall, this one with smaller things: rings, wooden and thread necklaces, more keychains… 'No girlfriend,' he said honestly.

The man chuckled. 'How old are you? Eighteen? There's still of time.'

He was sixteen but didn't bother correcting the store-tender. The white hair usually misled people.

'Something more manly, then.' The man nodded to himself, combing over his own selections.

'Actually, I'm okay.' He backed away before he realised why, before he realised he was being encouraged to buy something to wear around his neck _just like the ring_ \- 'Sorry!'

He ducked into a nearby complex, just so the other man couldn't watch him vanish down the street.

It turned out to be lucky because there were casual clothing stores in there, but that wasn't the type of misadventure he planned to write to Amane about.


End file.
